Are You Sure You're Not Just Tickling Me?
"Gang Leader, the one leading over there is Bai Wei, and the person behind him is Lei Qian," Wang Sheng introduced to Lin Ming, pointing towards the White Dragon Gang.
Lin Ming looked at the people in front of the White Dragon Gang and could clearly feel the gloom on their faces.
As Lin Ming sized up Bai Wei's gaze also turned towards Lin Ming. Their eyes met in that instant.
After a moment, Lin Ming withdrew his gaze. Bai Wei wasn't a beauty, so Lin Ming had no interest in looking at her any longer. After exchanging a glance, he led the Medicine Gang members to the inner area of Arena.
Inside the Arena, with the arrival of members from the Medicine Gang and the White Dragon Gang, the atmosphere became rather oppressive, like dark clouds looming overhead before a storm.
In this world where strength reigns supreme, improving one's cultivation level is something everyone does. And Alchemist can refine various pills with different effects are highly sought after by everyone.
It's safe to say that if all professions in the Dou Qi Continent were ranked, Alchemist would undoubtedly be at the top. This demonstrates just how high Alchemist status is.
As almost the only pill-making organization in the Inner Academy, the Medicine Gang's status within the Inner Academy is unquestionable; it is an absolute dominant force.
The Gang Leader of the White Dragon Gang is a master ranked ninth on the Strong Ranking. In the Inner Academy, not everyone in the top ten of the Strong Ranking has established a power base. Some people are used to working alone and have no desire to build a power base at all. Therefore, among the powers in the Inner Academy, only a few powers are Leader by someone in the top ten of the Strong Ranking.
These forces, whose Leader are among the top ten on the power Strong Ranking, are known as the dominant forces within the Inner Academy.
To be honest, the Medicine Gang isn't exactly a dominant force right now. The current gang leader, Lin Ming, isn't even ranked on the power rankings; instead, the gang's vice-leader, Wang Sheng, is ranked twenty-eighth.
However, given the unique nature of the Medicine Gang, as the only pill-making organization in the Inner Academy, and with Lin Ming now being Tier 5 Alchemist, the Medicine Gang is also one of the dominant forces.
"In this duel between Lin Ming, the leader of the Medicine Gang, and Lei Qian of the White Dragon Gang, who do you think will win?"
"It's hard to say. Although on the surface Lei Qian's cultivation is Four Stars higher than Lin Ming's, giving him a significant advantage, the incident a while ago where Lin Ming severely injured Xu Ke of the White Dragon Gang with a single punch shows that Lin Ming's combat power is extremely terrifying."
"Yes! Lin Ming entered the Inner Academy as the top-ranked contestant in the selection competition. The Inner Academy Selection Tournament involves many battles, and for Lin Ming to enter as the top-ranked Inner Academy, his combat strength is absolutely formidable. In addition, as Alchemist, he has abundant resources to exchange for what he needs, so he must not lack high-level Dou Technique. Therefore, it's hard to say what will happen in their battle right now."
After the Medicine Gang and the White Dragon Gang arrived, the crowd below began discussing their opinions on the match. Some people, based on their own judgment, realized that the Medicine Gang leader's ability to challenge the White Dragon Gang was not merely due to spite between two opposing forces; the Medicine Gang likely had genuine strength to back it up.
Inside the Arena, there were many arenas. Normally, these arenas were used for matches, but now, everyone in the Arena was gathered around the arena in the very center, leaving all the other arenas empty.
"Lin Ming, get down here and die!" From the White Dragon Gang's side, Lei Qian was the first to step onto the dueling platform, shouting arrogantly towards the Medicine Gang.
"Thank goodness! Thank goodness! You didn't miss it. Lin Ming, I'm here to support you." A child's voice rang out. The voice wasn't loud, but for those in the Arena, especially those who had been in the Inner Academy for several years, it was incredibly awe-inspiring.
A Little Girl with purple hair walked from the entrance of the Arena toward the inside. Wherever she went, the people in the Arena automatically made way for her.
"What did you just say?" After reaching the edge of the Arena, Zi Yan looked at Lei Qian on the platform and said calmly.
Seeing Zi Yan standing at the edge of the ring, her hands clasped together, her knuckles cracking, Lei Qian unconsciously swallowed hard, cold sweat beading on his forehead.
When Lei Qian entered the Inner Academy, he witnessed Zi Yan unleashing her full power. At that time, the top ten on the Strong Ranking were all forced to flee in defeat under Zi Yan's fists. This is how Zi Yan earned the title of "Brute Force King".
The Brute Force King was right below him, clenching his fist. How could Lei Qian not be terrified? His small frame couldn't withstand the Brute Force King's Iron Fist.
Only then did people remember that Lin Ming had the backing of this Brute Force King. Before Lin Ming entered the Inner Academy, Zi Yan had issued a notice instructing those participating in the Fire Energy Hunt Competition not to make things difficult for Lin Ming.
After Lin Ming arrived at the Inner Academy, he was protected by the Medicine Gang and did not fight with anyone. Apart from cultivation, he spent most of his time in the Medicine Gang and had no time to fight with others. As a result, people had forgotten that the Brute Force King was still standing behind Lin Ming.
None of the people in the Inner Academy were willing to confront Zi Yan, this Brute Force King. So now, the crowd was all watching to see how the White Dragon Gang would react.
A fight is out of the question. Even if Lei Qian on stage, or Bai Wei, the leader of the White Dragon Gang watching from the sidelines, came down with him, it would only mean one more punch for Zi Yan. It wouldn't change the final outcome in the slightest.
Lei Qian on the stage, was sweating profusely. He had already made up his mind that if this Brute Force King came up now, he would run down immediately and not linger for a moment.
Are you kidding me? Let him fight this Brute Force King? With the way this Brute Force King is showing off to others right now, if he takes a punch, even if he doesn't die, he'll be badly injured. Lei Qian hasn't lived enough yet, so fighting is out of the question.
An eerie silence fell over the scene, something almost unheard of in Arena, yet it was happening nonetheless.
"Senior Sister Zi Yan, with your strength, no one here is your match. And in this duel between the White Dragon Gang and Zi Yan Medicine Gang, if you were to take action, no one in our White Dragon Gang would be your match, and we would automatically concede defeat before you," Bai Wei said respectfully.
The way Bai Wei said this made it clear to anyone that he respected Zi Yan, not the Medicine Gang.
"Zi Yan, come here! This battle was arranged between my Medicine Gang and the White Dragon Gang, so don't interfere." Lin Ming spoke up at this moment, calling out to Zi Yan.
"Hmph!" After hearing Lin Ming's words, Zi Yan snorted at Lei Qian on the stage before walking towards the Medicine Gang.
In Zi Yan's eyes, anyone who dared to say that Lin Ming should die was simply asking for trouble.
Lin Ming is dead. Where will she go to eat those delicious Medicinal Pill? Now that she's gotten used to eating tasty Medicinal Pill, Zi Yan simply can't bring herself to eat those bitter and astringent herbs again.
Putting aside the fact that Lin Ming is now like Zi Yan's benefactor, Zi Yan would never allow anything to happen to Lin Ming solely on their relationship.
Having lived alone in the forest for an unknown period of time, Zi Yan was only brought to the Inner Academy by the Great Elder after accidentally eating an immature Form-Shifting Grass and transforming into human form. This finally relieved Zi Yan of her loneliness.
But to Zi Yan, the Great Elder was like a grandfather. And Lin Ming was Zi Yan's friend, Zi Yan only friend.
For Zi Yan, Lin Ming was the only friend she could confide in. As can be seen from the original work, Zi Yan would risk her life for a friend she truly trusted.
That's why Zi Yan challenged Lei Qian to repeat himself when she heard someone call Lin Ming dead.
After arriving at Lin Ming's side, Zi Yan said angrily, "Lin Ming, you must give this guy a good beating later. How dare he tell you to die!"
"Alright! Just because Lei Qian made you angry, Zi Yan, he won't be able to walk down the steps on his own today. Zi Yan, you just wait and see." Lin Ming said to Zi Yan with a smile, and then walked towards the arena as Zi Yan nodded.
Upon arriving at the arena, Lin Ming glanced at the White Dragon Gang, then looked at Lei Qian, and said calmly, "Dealing with your White Dragon Gang doesn't require Zi Yan's intervention. As for you, Lei Qian, I hope you have some strength! Otherwise, you'll be lying on your back today."
"Arrogant! You think you're Senior Sister Zi Yan? Today I'll show you the strength of someone ranked 30th on the Strong Ranking." After saying this, Lei Qian launched the first attack on Lin Ming, and the battle between the two officially began.
"Clang!"
Lin Ming gripped the Star Dragon Saber to block Lei Qian's incoming spear.
"Bang!"
The weapons of both sides clashed once again, producing a series of loud sounds.
Lei Qian truly lives up to his reputation as a top expert ranked 30th on the Strong Ranking. His speed and agility are comparable to Lin Ming's. In terms of speed alone, Lei Qian surpasses the vast majority of people in the Inner Academy.
Lei Qian, who was in the midst of the battle, was even more alarmed. Although Xu Ke had told Lei Qian that Lin Ming's movements were extremely fast, Lei Qian did not take it seriously.
Lei Qian's speed is attributed to the Profound Tier High-grade Movement Fighting Skill he has cultivated.
After mastering this Movement Fighting Skill, among the people on the Strong Ranking, apart from the top ten who can keep up with his speed, very few others can.
However, in his current confrontation with Lin Ming not only kept up with his speed and agility, but Lei Qian even felt that he was being subtly suppressed in terms of speed and agility. This made Lei Qian, who always relied on speed to win, feel uneasy.
"Lin Ming, I must say, your movement skills are indeed remarkable. However, speed alone is useless. Next, I'll show you the true strength of 5-Star Dou Spirit."
After Lei Qian finished speaking, Lei Qian flashed at the tip of his spear, and a beam of lightning attacked Lin Ming.
"Boom!"
"He hit! Lin Ming won't lose like this, will he?"
"I don't know. But even if Lin Ming wasn't defeated after being struck by Lei Qian's lightning bolt, he must have been in a terrible state."
Someone in the crowd watching below spoke up, all waiting to see Lin Ming's reaction.
"Is this the attack of 5-Star Dou Spirit that you, Lei Qian, were talking about? Are you sure this isn't just a tickle?" Lin Ming said calmly, dusting himself off.